Carmelo Anthony plans to opt out of his contract with the Knicks and become a free agent this summer. Here’s a look at possible destinations:
Bulls
Chicago has work to do to get sufficiently under the salary cap to make this work. They must amnesty Carlos Boozer and move Mike Dunleavy in a salary dump. And there’s still a possibility they’d also have to move sixth man extraordinaire Taj Gibson. After those moves, would Anthony still consider the Bulls a title contender? He does like coach Tom Thibodeau and the big market.
Rockets
The Post first reported Houston’s interest in acquiring Anthony last month, but more so in a sign-and-trade if the Knicks are desperate. To get under the cap, Rockets GM Daryl Morey still has to shuttle off the expiring deals of Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik. No easy task. However, in a sign-and-trade, Lin’s marketability could still be appealing as long as the Knicks get back a young asset in Chandler Parsons. No state income tax in Texas and Dwight Howard’s pitch that winning is more important than market size nowadays should have Anthony intrigued.
Lakers
Jeanie Buss’ club will have the necessary cap space to sign Anthony, but doesn’t seem inclined to do so. Would Buss want to ruin fiancé Phil Jackson’s club right off the bat? Word is, the Lakers are looking more at the 2015 free-agent class, which features Kevin Love.
Clippers
Anthony has always wanted to play with Chris Paul, and he has a home in Los Angeles. But Blake Griffin’s emergence has made LA not a strong candidate for Anthony’s services. They’d need a sign-and-trade and Griffin once figured to be the pawn. No longer.
Knicks
The Knicks can offer the most at five years, $129 million, but Anthony doesn’t want all that cash if taking less means the club can add to the talent in 2015 free agency. Anthony has made plenty of statements he strongly prefers to remain — especially now that Jackson is here to impart his philosophy to the franchise. But Anthony does want to hear a personnel plan before committing. Anthony’s trust that Jackson can figure it out makes the Knicks big favorites.